The present invention relates to an information recording disk for recording digital data including AV data, a recording method, a reproduction method and a recording apparatus therefor, and an information processing system thereof.
There are optical disks for recording information such as computer data, e.g., PDs. PD is a rewritable optical disk which employs the phase change system and performs recording and reproduction of data by sectors.
A problem associated with rewritable optical disks is that data recording and reproduction cannot be ensured for every sector due to dust attached to the disk, a scratch on the disk, deterioration of the disk material itself from repeated recording operations, or the like. Such a sector, from which data cannot be normally recorded/reproduced, is called a defective sector. Such a defective sector is typically replacement-recorded based on a linear replacement algorithm.
The linear replacement algorithm is a system where a large number of spare areas are provided in a particular area on the disk so as to replacement-record data to an appropriate sector in the spare area when a defective sector is detected, thereby ensuring the reliability of input data.
In recent years, AV processing environments have been improved in personal computer apparatuses, and it is becoming more common to enjoy audio/video titles with a personal computer apparatus using a CD-ROM, or the like, in which AV data is recorded as being compressed based on a system such as the MPEG system.
However, since the conventional rewritable optical disk and the disk drive apparatus therefor are designed while assuming the use for recording/reproducing computer data, there are various problems when recording/reproducing AV data having different characteristics from those of computer data.
Typically, there is a problem that continuous video reproduction cannot be ensured when reproducing AV data. This is because a defective sector detected during the recording of the AV data is replacement-recorded using a conventional defect management method, whereby the continuous reproduction of AV data is hampered by a delay associated with an access to the spare area during data reproduction.
This problem is particularly conspicuous in the case of the above-described linear replacement algorithm. For example, when a defective sector occurs in the innermost area of the disk while the spare area is provided in the outermost area of the disk, the head moves from the inner area of the disk to the outer area of the disk in accessing the spare area, thereby resulting in a seek time of several hundred milliseconds. Since picture reproduction of video at 30 frames per second is required, if such a seek time as long as several hundred milliseconds is generated, the reproduced images will consequently be interrupted.
A problem in AV data recording is that it is necessary to provide a variety of recording methods. For example, AV data to be transmitted in real time via a broadcast wave, or the like, has to be recorded on the disk in real time. On the other hand, when high quality AV data to be downloaded via the internet, or the like, is asynchronously recorded on the disk, the real time recording is not necessary, but data recording with high reliability is required.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems and has an objective of providing method and apparatus for recording data which enable real time recording of AV data to a rewritable optical disk and continuous reproduction of the recorded AV data, a reproduction method, a reproduction apparatus and an information recording disk therefor, and an information processing system composed thereof.
A recording method of the present invention is a recording method for recording an AV file including AV data using an information recording disk in which data is recorded/reproduced by sectors, the recording method including the steps of: determining whether or not input data is AV data; detecting a defective sector existing in a data recording area assigned for recording the input data; when it is determined that the input data is the AV data and a defective sector is detected in the data recording area, allocating a defective extent including the defective sector; recording the AV data in continuous sectors while skipping the defective extent; and allocating an area of continuous sectors where only the AV data is recorded as one AV extent, wherein an AV file is recorded on the information recording disk, wherein the AV file includes: a defective extent, which includes, when a defective sector is included in the data recording area, the defective sector; and one or more AV extents each including a plurality of continuous sectors, thereby realizing the above-described objective.
Only a sector where an address error is detected during a data recording operation may be detected as the defective sector.
The defective sector may include a sector where an address error is detected during a data recording operation and a sector where a data error is detected during a data verification operation.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the defective extents may be allocated by ECC blocks.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the method may further include the step of allocating, in the AV file, a padding extent which does not include AV data.
The method may further include the step of recording attribute information for identifying the AV file including AV data, as part of file management information.
The method may further include the step of recording attribute information for identifying the defective extent and the AV extent, as part of file management information, in such a format that the attribute information is in one-to-one correspondence with the respective extents forming an AV file.
A recording apparatus of the present invention is a recording apparatus for recording AV data on an information recording disk in which data is recorded/reproduced by sectors, the recording apparatus including: a section for determining whether or not input data is AV data; a section for detecting a defective sector existing in a data recording area assigned for recording the input data; and a section for recording the AV data in continuous sectors while skipping the defective sector, wherein AV data is recorded in a plurality of continuous sectors on the information recording disk while skipping a defective sector existing in the data recording area, thereby realizing the above-described objective.
Only a sector where an address error is detected during a data recording operation may be detected as the defective sector.
The defective sector may include a sector where an address error is detected during a data recording operation and a sector where a data error is detected during a data verification operation.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the defective sectors may be skipped by ECC blocks each including the defective sector.
An information processing system of the present invention is an information processing system including: the above-described recording apparatus; and a control device for controlling the recording apparatus, the information processing system including: a section for allocating, in recording of an AV file, a defective sector detected by the recording apparatus as a defective extent; and a section for allocating continuous sectors where only AV data is recorded by the recording apparatus as an AV extent, wherein an AV file is recorded on the information recording disk, the AV file including: a defective extent, which includes, when a defective sector is included in the data recording area, the defective sector; and one or more AV extents each including a plurality of continuous sectors, thereby realizing the above-described objective.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the control device may allocate the defective extent by ECC blocks each including a defective sector.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the control device may further include a section for allocating a padding extent which does not include AV data, as part of the AV file.
The control device may further include a section for recording attribute information for identifying the AV file including AV data, as part of file management information.
The control device may further include a section for recording attribute information for identifying the defective extent and the AV extent, as part of file management information, in such a format that the attribute information is in one-to-one correspondence with the respective extents forming an AV file.
The control device may include a section for setting in the recording apparatus an acceptable value for the total number of sectors skipped when a defective sector is detected during a recording operation for AV data; and the recording apparatus may include a section for, after AV data has been recorded while skipping defective sectors within a range not exceeding the acceptable value, informing the control device of location information of all the sectors skipped during a recording operation for AV data.
The recording apparatus may include a section for, each time a defective sector is detected during a recording operation for AV data, informing the control section of the detection of the defective sector along with location information of the defective sector; and the control section may include a section for setting in the recording apparatus a new recording start location for AV data each time the detection of the defective sector is informed.
A reproduction method of the present invention is a reproduction method for performing data reproduction from the information recording disk on which the AV file is recorded using the above-described recording method, the method including the step of, in an AV data reproduction operation from the AV extent, performing a continuous data reproduction operation while neglecting location information of a replacement-recorded defective sector and not performing a recovery process even when an error occurs during data reproduction, thereby realizing the above-described objective.
A reproduction apparatus of the present invention is a reproduction apparatus for performing data reproduction from the information recording disk on which the AV file is recorded using the above-described recording method, the apparatus including a section for, in an AV data reproduction operation from the AV extent, performing a continuous data reproduction operation while neglecting location information of a replacement-recorded defective sector and not performing a recovery process even when an error occurs during data reproduction, thereby realizing the above-described objective.
An information recording disk of the present invention is an information recording disk in which an AV file including AV data is recorded/reproduced by sectors, wherein the AV file includes: a defective extent, which includes, when a defective sector is included in the data recording area assigned for file recording, the defective sector; and one or more AV extents recorded in a plurality of continuous sectors where only the AV data is recorded, thereby realizing the above-described objective.
Only a sector where an address error may be detected during a data recording operation is regarded as the defective sector.
The defective sector may include a sector where an address error is detected during a data recording operation and a sector where a data error is detected during a data verification operation.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the defective extents may be allocated by ECC blocks.
When using an information recording disk where an ECC block has a plurality of sectors, the AV file may include a padding extent which does not include AV data.
Attribute information for identifying the AV file including AV data may be further recorded as part of file management information.
Attribute information for identifying the defective extent and the AV extent may be further recorded, as part of file management information, in such a format that the attribute information is in one-to-one correspondence with the respective extents forming an AV file.